Source: Blue Jays claimed Nick Robertson off waivers from the Angels
Getting to know Nick Robertson, the newest pitcher in the Blue Jays system
Photo credit: © Jeff Curry - USA Today
Sep 18, 2024, 06:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 17, 2024, 22:20 EDT
It’s that time of year and that kind of season when the Toronto Blue Jays take fliers on relievers who are on the waiver wire.
On Tuesday, they claimed Nick Robertson off of waivers from the Los Angeles Angels. Not to be confused with Nick Robertson of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the pitcher Robertson could have the highest ceiling of any relievers that the Blue Jays have claimed so far this season.
Robertson was selected in the seventh round in the 2019 draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers, and after good results in the Dodgers farm system, they shipped him out to Boston in exchange for Enrique Hernández at the 2023 trade deadline. The 2023 season was also when he made his big league debut, posting a 6.04 ERA and a 3.88 FIP in 22.1 innings pitched between the Dodgers and the Red Sox.
An imposing righthanded reliever, Robertson mixes a fastball, slider and changeup. Robertson’s four-seam fastball sits 95-96 mph and touches 97, and misses bats when located at the top of the zone. His best secondary is an upper-80s changeup with heavy tumble and fade. He shows remarkable feel for the pitch despite its dynamic movement and generates whiffs in and out of the zone with it. Robertson’s breaking ball is a mid-80s sweeper slider that generates few whiffs but lots of bad contact. Robertson shows strong command for his entire arsenal and is a candidate for the opening day bullpen.
The Cardinals acquired Robertson in an off-season trade, sending Canadian outfielder Tyler O’Neill to the Red Sox in exchange for the right-handed reliever. In hindsight, this is a shocking trade for the Cardinals as O’Neill is slashing .254/.347/.541 with 31 home runs in 444 plate appearances for a 140 wRC+.
The #RedSox today acquired OF Tyler O’Neill from the St. Louis Cardinals, in exchange for RHP Nick Robertson and minor league RHP Victor Santos.
He pitched in the big leagues for the Cardinals, where he had a 4.38 ERA and a 4.55 FIP in 12.1 innings pitched, along with a 26.9 K% and a 3.8 BB%. Despite solid results, he was designated for assignment and claimed by the Los Angeles Angels. With their Triple-A team, Robertson had a 6.92 ERA and a 4.30 FIP in 13 innings pitched before they also designated him for assignment.
The story of Robertson’s career over the past two seasons is that while his ERA is high, his FIP (that just looks at strikeouts, walks, and home runs) has always been respectable. His heater sits in the mid-90s, while his changeup generates a ton of whiffs. There’s certainly a solid reliever here, as you can see in this thread from Remi Bunikiewicz.
(1/10) Nick Robertson is an East-West pronator with elite extension (7.1 ft) He has 2 option years left, and his mix is FF/CH/SL/SW. The CH is his money pitch as it collects a 35% whiff and strong batted ball results this year -- 85 EV and -3 LA.
Robertson has very little service time in the big leagues, meaning that he still has two more seasons before his three seasons of arbitration. Moreover, he has an additional option year in 2025, so if the Jays can get the best out of him, he could be a Blue Jay for a long time.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.